


Shattered Peace

by AndromedaIX



Category: Warriors - Erin Hunter
Genre: Destiny, Murder, Mystery, Prophecy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-17
Updated: 2019-06-22
Packaged: 2020-05-13 17:29:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,692
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19255852
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AndromedaIX/pseuds/AndromedaIX
Summary: "Even the smallest flower can upset a delicate balance"Roseleaf is one of the few warriors in Echoclan to have a possibility of becoming deputy, thanks to her bloodline. Despite this, she's unwilling to follow the path laid out before her — until a mysterious string of murders starts happening to the cats around her. Determined to uncover the cat behind the horrible crime, Roseleaf must contend with her clanmates,  who blame rogues or a rival clan. But Roseleaf's gut tells her something darker is afoot.





	1. Allegiances

 

**Echoclan**

Leader: **Birdstar-** A brown and white speckled she-cat with green eyes.

Deputy: **Wildfur** \- A black wiry furred tom with blue eyes

Medicine Cat: **Yelloweye-** A dusty long haired black tom with amber eyes.

**Apprentice- Rowanpaw**

Warriors:

 **Ashfall-** A gray she-cat with light gray tabby markings and green eyes.

**Apprentice-Owlpaw**

**Voleclaw-** A brown tom with dark amber eyes.

 **Foxsong-** A dark ginger and black she-cat with green eyes.

**Apprentice- Whitepaw**

**Spiderfang-** A long legged black and white tom with blue eyes.

 **Speckleleap-** A white and brown speckled she-cat with blue eyes.

 **Beetlefoot-** A dark gray tom with black paws and  amber eyes

 **Honeyheart-** A pale ginger she-cat with green eyes.

**Apprentice-Smallpaw**

**Firespot-** A large bright ginger tom with amber eyes

 **Acornpelt-** A brown she-cat with green eyes

 **Thrushfeather-** A light brown and white tom with blue eyes.

 **Pigeonspots-** Gray and white she-cat

 **Raggedleg-** A heavy set dark ginger tom with single black leg and yellow eyes.

 **Hazelspring-** A small cinnamon colored she-cat with light yellow eyes.

 **Sharpgaze-** A Russian blue tom with green eyes.

 **Goldenwind-** Fluffy cream colored she-cat with amber eyes.

 **Swiftflight-** Long furred black she-cat with blue eyes.

Apprentices:

 **Whitepaw-** A white tom with green eyes.

 **Owlpaw-** A brown speckled she-cat with amber eyes.

 **Smallpaw-** A short brown she-cat with amber eyes.

 **Rowanpaw-** A red tom with brown eyes.

Queens:

 **Willowleaf-** A white and ginger she-cat with blue eyes

(Mother to Rosekit and Dustkit)

 **Sparkfur-** A ginger she-cat with green eyes

(Mother to Briarkit, Finchkit, and Petalkit)

Elders:

 **Brokentooth-** A gray tom with green eyes

 **Nettlefoot-** A brown she-cat with amber eyes.

**Ashclan**

Leader: **Fogstar-** A black sleek she-cat with brown eyes

Deputy: **Wolfeye-** A gray tom with blue eyes

**Apprentice- Bumblepaw**

Medicine Cat: **Ravenwing-** A black she-cat with light blue eyes.

Warriors:

 **Flintnose-** A thin gray tom with a scar on his muzzle.

 **Misteye-** A long furred gray she-cat.

 **Pineheart-** A brown tabby tom.

 **Poppymouse-** A black tortoiseshell she-cat.

 **Sageflight-** A scruffy brown tom

Apprentices:

 **Bumblepaw-** A chubby sleek gray tabby tom with long fur and amber eyes

 **Stumpypaw-** A large tortoiseshell she-cat with half her tail missing. 

**Lakeclan**

 

Leader: **Wetstar-** A brown tabby tom with brown eyes

Deputy: **Webfoot-** A white and black tom with blue eyes.

Medicine Cat: **Littlebird-** A black calico she-cat with blue eyes

Warriors:

 **Graypond-** Gray tom with green eyes.

 **Icepool-** White she-cat with amber eyes.

Apprentices:

 **Riverpaw-** Brown tom with blue eyes

 **Ivypaw-** A gray and white tabby she-cat with blue eyes

Queens:

 **Sorrelroot-** A brown she-cat with green eyes

Elders:

 **Shrewnose-** A gray and white tom with blue eyes

**Dawnclan**

Leader: **Sunstar-** A long furred ginger tom with green eyes.

Deputy: **Skybreeze-** A light gray she-cat with blue eyes.

Medicine Cat: **Ambercloud-** A dilute calico she-cat with green eyes.

Warriors:

 **Ivyflower-** Acream and gray she-cat

 **Pricklethorn-** Dark brown tabby tom

 **Bayleaf-** Pale brown she-cat

Appprentices

 **Loudpaw-** Bright ginger tom.

 **Rabbitpaw-** White she-cat with black splotches. 

 **Yarrowpaw-** Ginger tabby she-cat

 


	2. Prologue

Birdstar found her in an opening surrounded by trees, the moonlight thinning out between the branches. She looked around for any signs of life, surely there had to be some shrouded in the darkness. Last she had known, she was sleeping in her den but now she was out here, could this be a dream? It felt like something more though, was she in Starclan? As though answering her unsaid question, a black tom came bounding forward through the trees, stardust covering his pelt.

“Ravenfall!” She happily mewed, walking toward him. “I have missed you so much these past moons, you have no idea how hard it is to lead the clan without you by my side.” She pressed her nuzzle into his long fur, taking in his comforting scent for a moment before she took a step back. “What am I doing here? I hope it’s good news, yes?”

“As much as I wish it was, no, I am here to warn you.” He seemed uncertain with himself, a look that Birdstar had never seen painted on the tom’s face.

“Of what? The clan is thriving now! Prey is in abundance and I don’t believe we have seen this much peace since Boulderstar.” She looked into his eyes for any hints of why he might have dragged her to this place. She could see none, instead she was only met with empty blue eyes, as though he had been thinking of this for a long time.

“The winds of change are starting, I’m afraid to say even you, Birdstar, cannot change them” He looked away for a moment, making Birdstar try to catch his gaze once more. He refused to let her, instead he looked off into the distance as if he was searching for something out there, an answer maybe? Didn’t Starclan know the answer to everything though?

“Please, Ravenfall, tell me what’s going to happen with my clan.” She pleaded, worry coating her voice now. She didn’t want to see her clan fall apart, she couldn’t. She’d fight tooth and claw for them to survive for more seasons.

“Understand that not even you can change the paws of fate, I am here to give you some help to better prepare yourself.” He paused for a moment, glancing at her as though he was trying to find the best way to put it. “ _"Even the smallest flower can upset a delicate balance"_

Birdstar went to ask him what he could possibly mean when he and the clearing vanished, she was now surrounded by the empty den she’s had since his passing.

_Ravenfall, please, what could you have meant?_


	3. Becoming An Apprentice

Rosekit was crouched down, eyeing her brother who was sitting, talking to Finchkit about something. He wouldn’t even notice if she jumped at him, would he? She slowly crept forward, hoping he wouldn’t turn around or Finchkit would give away her hiding spot. She finally was close enough to make the jump, which she did, and she landed square on his back. 

Both of them were sent tumbling into the now screeching Finchkit, who was much smaller than both of them. Dustkit let out a playful growl and shoved her off, getting up himself.

“Couldn’t you guys have waited until I moved out of the way?” The poor ginger tom groaned, heaving himself up and walking off in a daze to the nursery. Rosekit rolled her eyes and turned to Dustkit. 

“We are going to be apprentice’s today! Have you thought about who your mentor might be?” Before the black tom could answer, Rosekit was shoved against the soft fur of who she could only guess was her mother. Looking up, she saw a pair of blue eyes staring down at her in a disapproving manner.

“Rosekit, why did you go and get your pelt dirty today, of all days?” She groaned, bending her head down to run her tongue along the fully grown kit’s back. Rosekit scrunched up her face in mock disgust but didn’t try to squirm away from her cleaning.

“Mom, we were just guessing who are mentors would be!” Dustkit jumped into the conversation, his own fur was now resembling his name very well, now dotting dark brown specks along the black pelt. “I was going to say, I hope it’s Firespot. He’s really strong and sooo big I’m pretty sure even badgers cower in fear when they see him!” He laughed at his own comment, knowing it was an exaggeration. Rosekit forced down a bit of jealousy, she too was hoping it was Firespot or a cat like him.

“Anyone but Beetlefoot, he’s scared of his own shadow it seems sometimes!” She told Dustkit, letting a soft  _ mrrow  _ out. This caused her mother to give her a soft nip the back of the neck, she let out a sharp yelp, startled from it. “What? It’s true!” 

“Either way, it’s not a nice thing to say and very kit-like of you Rosekit. You’re about to be a ‘paw and I expect you to start acting like one. A lot of cats are looking at you, you are the deputy’s kit.” Rosekit let out an exhale, she knew this. She heard about this at least ten times a day from the clan.  _ Rosekit, stop trying to sneak out what would Wildfur think? Rosekit, stop trying to sneak extra prey your father wouldn’t do that!  _ She thought bitterly, turning her head away. 

“Speaking of him, is he going to be at our ceremony? He told us last night he would be and it’s almost sun high!” Dustkit fretted, turning his head to the top of the gorge as though he expected their father to come bounding down just then. Rosekit broke free from her mother’s grasp, deeming herself clean enough now. 

“He will be, Dustkit, calm down. He’s on a simple hunting patrol, Birdstar wouldn’t let him miss this ceremony.” Willowleaf purred, her eyes filled with love as she thought of her mate. Rosekit had to stop herself from being grossed out by this, instead she nudged Dustkit to follow her. 

“Come on, we can wait for him at the entrance or you can wait here and be cleaned by mother.” She teased, Dustkit quickly shook his head and followed after, shaking free some of the dirt in the process so he’d look at least decent when he was called forward. The two of them approached the slope and looked up patiently. 

Only moments later a slim frame came into view, holding a sizable rabbit in his jaw as he bounded down with a warrior and apprentice following suit. Rosekit couldn’t help feeling a bit of pride despite her earlier attitude, her father was leading the patrol and it looked like he got the biggest piece of prey for the clan. He stopped short of running into them, dropping his rabbit onto the back of Honeyheart who graciously carried it to the pile.

“Hello young ones, what are you doing this far from the nursery? Weren’t you just opening your eyes yesterday?” The deputy joked, giving his shoulder a quick lick in attempt to smooth his unruly fur. 

“No! Don’t you know what day it is?” Dustkit asked, his eyes narrowed in suspicion. Rosekit had to stifle the laugh that was forming in her throat, he always took things seriously even when he joked a lot himself. 

“Hmm, is it the gathering tonight?” Wildfur looked up, as though he expected to see the moon at its full in the night sky. “No...that can’t be it, I think Birdstar would have told me. Hmm...oh yes, it’s your ceremony today isn’t it?” He finally concluded, giving each one of them a quick lick on the head. Dustkit was practically bouncing out of his fur now, his excitement coming off in waves. 

“Yes! You’re not going to go on anymore patrols until it happens right?” Rosekit pleaded, widening her eyes in hopes he would take pity on her now. He let out a soft chuckle and shook his head in response. 

“No, not until you’re both ‘paws. Now, I really hope you’re not expecting to be apprenticed looking like that, Dustkit. Your mother would have a fit, send you back to the nursery and demand a redo with your fur in order.” Dustkit scoffed but didn’t argue, instead he made his way back to the nursery. “And you, you haven’t gotten into any trouble today right?” Wildfur’s blue eyes were settled on his daughter now with skepticism. 

“Not yet!” She purred, puffing out her chest proudly.  _ Well, unless you count being scolded for getting my pelt dirty and making fun of Beetlefoot as being in trouble… _

“It always worries me when you say yet, you know that right? You’re going to make me an elder before my time.” Wildfur flicked his tail, walking by his daughter but signalling for her to follow him closely. She turned and kept herself just behind him, his tail tickling her nose every so often when it would flick to her. “I think you should sit with me near the front of the clan, everyone will be expecting as much at least.” He muttered, looking to the other cats that were beginning to file into the clearing. Even though the gathering hadn’t been called yet they seemed to be excited to see the kits become apprentices. 

Rosekit wished she could shrink into her pelt, not liking the wandering eyes on her. She willed the ground beneath her to open up and just take her now but it didn’t. She sighed, finally reaching her seat next to her father. She looked to the nursery, noting it’s bramble thorns were shaking as Dustkit came racing out to her. Willowleaf followed behind him but she kept her pace at a leisure, her eyes fixated on Wildfur. Rosekit rolled her head back and groaned, she didn’t need to watch this couldn’t Birdstar come out and start the ceremony already? As if she was listening to her, the leader left her den from on top of the ledge.

“May all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather below Calling Ledge for a clan meeting!” The brown she-cat yowled, though she had no need since most cats were already there. A few stragglers joined them finally, looking between Birdstar and the kits. “Today is a special day for Echoclan, for Dustkit and Rosekit are ready to be apprenticed!” 

Rosekit found herself scanning the crowd, wondering which of these cats would be her mentor. She had found herself always hoping it would be Foxsong but she still had Whitepaw as an apprentice. Could it be Beetlefoot? Surely not, Birdstar wouldn’t place them under the guidance of him. It could be Thrushfeather, he was only made a warrior the last half moon but he was Birdstar’s kit after all. 

“Dustkit!” Birdstar began, clearing her throat and bringing Rosekit from her thoughts. She looked back up, her head hurting from this angle. How did her father do this? Oh yeah, he stared straight forward. She snapped her head forward before she could get scolded. “You have reached the age of six moons, and it is time for you to be an apprentice. From this day on, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Dustpaw. Your mentor will be Speckleleap. I hope Speckleleap will pass down all she knows on to you.” 

Rosekit watched as her brother made his way over to the she-cat to touch noses, purring to himself while doing so. She would be up next, worry was settling in now and she felt a soft hum coursing through her body as she heard her name cross the leader’s mouth. “Rosekit, you have reached the age of six moon, and it is time for you to be an apprentice. From this day on, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Rosepaw. Your mentor will be Spiderfang. I hope Spiderfang passes down all he knows on to you.” Rosepaw jumped to her paws and scrambled her way over to the long legged tom. He let out a strong purr as he touched his nose to hers before breaking away.

“Rosepaw! Dustpaw! Rosepaw! Dustpaw!” The sound of her new name rang in her ears for longer than it was actually shouted, it warmed her very core. She fluffed out her pelt and turned her attention to Spiderfang. He looked very much like her father, if she didn’t know better she would think they were littermates but no, Spiderfang was a kit adopted by Nettlefoot in her youth. 

“Let’s get you out into the territory for your first time... _ as a ‘paw _ ” He added the last part with a small smirk playing at his muzzle, as though he recalled her many attempts to sneak out. Rosepaw flattened her ears against the back of her head, trying to ignore the shame washing over her now.  _ He’s just teasing you, don’t worry about it!  _ She perked up now, nodding her head in excitement. Just as the two of them were about to make their way over to the entrance of the camp, a bundle of tortoiseshell fur stopped them in their tracks. 

“Father! You said you’d show me how to hunt today, I’ve been practicing with Briarkit but he said I’m too small to actually even try to hunt yet” The kit whined. 

“Not right now, I was just given an apprentice, Petalkit. I have to take her out before I do anything else today.” The tom quickly put, sidestepping so he could make his way past her. Rosepaw couldn’t help but feel sympathetic towards her as she followed Spiderfang out of camp.  _ If my dad said something like that, I don’t know how I’d feel...he always makes time for us.  _

The two cats made they were out of the gorge and towards the western border, following the treeline towards it. She couldn’t help but bask in the beauty of the forest just beyond them, how much of it was their territory? She couldn’t imagine being able to explore all of it one day, but Spiderfang seemed like he was determined to do so. 

She soon heard the sound of rushing water, which caused her ears to perk up and she picked up her speed, overtaking Spiderfang. She could see a river flowing now, soft sand hitting her paws as she reached its edges. Rosepaw could feel the heat emitting off of it, tempting to her lay down and fall asleep where she was.

“Don’t even think about it, you wouldn’t be the first or the last apprentice to try and sleep here. The only cats allowed to laze about here are the elders, this is the Sun Sands. Just across the river you will find Lakeclan, though you might not want to. They smell rather...well they smell. Go ahead, get a whiff of the border.” Rosepaw opened her mouth, she could scent Echoclan and the river, yet mixed into it was the faint scent of something else, something she had never smelled before. 

She quickly closed her mouth and scrunched up her nose, not enjoying their scent at all. It was along the lines of fish and something else, probably another water thing she didn’t know the name of yet. 

“Yeah, you’ll never get used to it. Come on, let’s follow the river up towards the Northern border, we should run into the Skytrees. It’s where we gather every full moon and the closest you’ll get to Dawnclan’s borders.” Rosepaw gave him a short nod and followed, shaking the sand free from between her pads when they hit the grass and dirt. They were now heading into the trees instead of just being outside them, she surprisingly found herself enjoying the cover it. She had spent her whole life up until now under the open sky of the gorge yet here she was. 

“Here we are, those trees stand taller than any in the forest. There may only be two of them, but that’s fine with us.” Spiderfang mewed, nodding to a pair of trees leaning into each other. She had to tilt her head all the way back to even attempt to see the top of them. 

“Has anyone tried to climb all the way up there?” She asked, taking a timid step forward, she was sure if someone tried hard enough they could, right? 

“Not that I know of, even if someone has I’m sure it only ended up in a trip to the medicine cat’s den or worse.” He replied grimly, quickly curling his tail around the back of her leg to signal she should step back within their own borders. “Even though it’s shared with all of our clans, it’s not smart to try and cross the border unless it’s a gathering, Rosepaw.” Rosepaw took a few steps back but let out a low sigh, this wasn’t exactly fun, was it? He was beginning to make his way along the border again, heading along a scent trail she could only determine as ‘a mix of crow-food and rat bile’. 

“What’s that scent? Is it the other clan? Ashclan?” She guessed, narrowing her eyes as she tried to peer across the border into their territory. It seemed as it was coated in darkness though, the sunlight barely filtering through the trees in the territory. She looked to her mentor, waiting for him to say something but he was quiet, one ear turned in a different direction. 

“Something is wrong, we need to go check out the Broken Tree. Stay close to me, Rosepaw.” With that said, the warrior took off in a sprint. Rosepaw tried to keep up with him, at least to the point where she could see him because she didn’t know this territory at all just yet, the few times she did leave camp as a kit were only just to the edges of the gorge and no further. 

She saw a break in the trees finally and she stopped to catch her breath, her lungs screaming at her for working out.  _ Perhaps, I really didn’t need all that extra prey.  _ She admitted to herself, trying not to fall on her side. She’d have to get into better shape if she wanted to be a proper warrior one day.

“Speckleleap? What’s going on here?” Spiderfang inquired, his body blocking Rosepaw’s view of her and whatever else was there. She stepped to the side so she could finally see what it was, her mouth hanging open at the sight of a fallen Dustpaw. 

“He-We were going to practice hunting, there’s not supposed to be snakes out here! Snake Grass is several tree-lengths away!” She cried, obviously distressed as she pressed her nose to his neck. “We need to get him back to camp, could you carry him on your back Spiderfang? Yelloweye will need to look at this bite and make sure he won’t get Snake Fever.” She fretted, her fur bristling. Rosepaw felt rooted to her place, she didn’t know if she could move. They were just made apprentices, they had moons of acting up in their future together!

“I can get up, Speckleleap...it was just...shock.” Dustpaw grimaced, trying to get up but falling back down, the bite must have been on his paw, right? She finally managed to move towards him but Spiderfang stopped her with his tail. She gave him a scowl, why couldn’t she go and help her brother? Didn’t she deserve that right?

“I can bear his weight, you cannot.” He muttered, moving forward to adjust the black tom so he’d be propped against him. “Let’s get back to camp before it gets worse.” He told Dustpaw who looked like he was about to argue until he settled into his short fur. Rosepaw flattened the fur that unknowingly had begun to stick up as she took in behind her mentor with Speckleleap. 

“It came out of nowhere, I didn’t even scent it!” Speckleleap tried to explain, though it seemed like she was speaking to herself and no one else. Rosepaw kept her attention on Dustpaw, trying to zone out Speckleleap but it was difficult with her standing right next to her. “Could this be a sign from Starclan? He’s my first apprentice!” Rosepaw rolled her eyes, Starclan would be the last of the cats to send a sign like this to Speckleleap. She was trained by Ravenfall after all, wasn’t she? That made her one of the chosen ‘mentors’ as the cats in the clan called them. 

  
“Will you just shut it? This isn’t making the pain in my paw go down any less, you know?” Dustpaw griped, leaning his head to the side. Speckleleap seemed offended but she didn’t actually argue with him, why?  _ You’re the mentor aren’t you? Is this because of our father? Are you kidding me?!  _ Rosepaw’s eyes widened at the realization, was she really scared to talk back to Dustpaw? Or was it because of his paw hurting? 


	4. An Unusual Border Patrol

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi thank you for reading! I hope you guys enjoy it so far ^^ I enjoy writing this for you guys. I should have Chapter three up soon enough. I hope to have a clear chapter schedule soon too haha. Sorry it's slow at first c: Should get more..mystery based in the chapters that follow

Rosepaw pressed herself against her denmate, Owlpaw, flattening her ears against her head as she tried to ignore the noise of the birds chirping outside. It had only been a quarter moon since her brother had been bitten and he was going to be out of the medicine cat’s den today. That doesn’t mean I want to wake up any earlier than I need to! She grumbled in her half asleep state, knowing full well that Spiderfang’s head would be poking through the den’s entrance wall soon enough. 

At least she had made a friend in the meantime, one who didn’t look at her as the deputy’s kit. Owlpaw was quickly becoming a very close friend of hers, someone she felt like she could confide in. She peered open one eye to see if she was up, which in fact she was.

“Good morning, Rosepaw.” Her denmate gave a soft purr, keeping her voice in a low whisper as to not wake the other two apprentice’s next to them. 

“Good morning, Owlpaw. What do you think you’ll be doing today?” She asked, lifting her head up to get a better look at her face. It wouldn’t be too long before Owlpaw and the other two apprentices joined the ranks of warriors, only another moon or so, making Rosepaw quiet intrigued with their own daily activities. 

“Probably changing Brokentooth’s bedding, then some battle practice.” Rosepaw couldn’t hide the envy in her eyes, she still hadn’t been out to test out her fighting skills yet. Maybe she could convince Spiderfang to do it today? Probably not but well worth a try. 

“Rosepaw! Get up!” She internally groaned as the voice interrupted their conversation, it was most certainly her mentor. She gave Owlpaw a look as though to say here we go again before forcing herself out of her warm nest to the entrance of the den. Spiderfang had stepped to the side of it so she could exit and when she did she was greeted with the dim sunlight above the camp walls. I was never up this early as a kit! It doesn’t even look as most of the warriors are up! 

“You and I are going on a border patrol today with Acornpelt and Wildfur.” She tipped her head to the side, her father was going? Didn’t he need to set up more patrols today? “Birdstar told him we should see how well you’re learning the scent markers, so he’s tagging along.” Rosepaw rolled her eyes, of course. I know the borders well enough, it’s all I do besides changing bedding and attempting to hunt! 

“I saw that, you know.” She heard her father’s voice begin, causing her to look down quickly. She dared to peek up at him but instantly regretted it, the disappointment in his eyes was evident. “Border patrols are a great part of clan life, if you are to be the deputy or leader of this clan one day you need to learn them.” Rosepaw scoffed, she was tired of hearing about how if she was going to be something more than a warrior one day. Dustpaw could be one, Thrushfeather, maybe even Swiftflight. 

“Come on now, there’s no point in holding up everyone Rosepaw.” Spiderfang scolded, heading off to meet Acornpelt towards the incline out of camp. Rosepaw was left alone with her father, his gaze still on her.

“What if I don’t want to be a deputy or leader?” She asked, turning her head to the side as she lifted it to meet his eyes. He seemed unmoved by her words, as though it was a typical discussion despite this being the first time of her bringing it up.

“You wouldn’t be the first to not want this, yet here you are. You cannot ignore destiny no matter how much you will it to change for you, so suck it up, young one, and come on.” He abruptly turned, signalling this was the last of their conversation on that topic. Rosepaw couldn’t help the feeling of emptiness settling into her stomach, as though she was alone in this despite his earlier words. 

When she made her way over to the three older warriors, they quickly stopped talking and looked to her. She forced down a snarky comment that was bubbling up in her throat, instead she whisked past them and began to head up to the forest. Her father was quick to take the lead, slipping by her without a word exchanged. 

“Wildfur might be the one leading us but you’ll be telling us how old the scent markers are from the older clans, just to see if you can do that.” Spiderfang whispered, causing a flurry of emotions to stir in the young apprentice. She could feel her nerves starting to wake up for once, were they really expecting her to be able to do all of that just a quarter moon in? 

“You’ll do great, the borders were the easiest thing for me to learn.” Wildfur cut in, casting a glance over his shoulder to them. Rosepaw could feel the pressure building up in her heart as they neared the Sun Sands, her first border check of the day. I can do this, it’s just the Lakeclan scent markers...which are usually harder to scent with the water mixed in. 

Finally they reached the Sun Sands and each warrior looked at her expectantly, as though she was supposed to already know the answer to how long ago the Lakeclan cats were here. She opened her mouth but she couldn’t scent anything beyond the water in front of her. She glanced to her father, about to tell him the truth but decided against it when she saw the disappointment flash in his eyes. I have to figure this out, I can do this. 

She took a few more steps forward, enough that the tips of her paws were against the lapping water. She opened her mouth once more, now the faint scent of Lakeclan was lingering there and she couldn’t help but feel thrilled at this, she could scent them!

“They were here, but they didn’t mark their border since...Last night most likely.” She guessed, looking back to them once again. Wildfur seemed to be checking her before giving her an approving look. 

“Very good, let’s mark our side and continue on our way.” Rosepaw quickly marked their side of the border before bounding after the group towards the Ashclan border. One down, one more to go. Will they make me check the border shared with the twoleg place? It’s so unused it’s unlikely…

She could see the Skytrees looming overhead, showing she would be reaching the side of the border with Ashclan soon. Their scent was easier than Lakeclan’s, what do they rub themselves in? Dirt and mouse-bile? She followed the patrol past the trees and along the border, wondering where they would make her stop to sniff out the Ashclan’s border.

“What was that?” Acornpelt hissed, her fur fluffing up as she saw something out of view of Rosepaw. Wildfur gave no response but instead he took off in a sprint towards what was causing the patrol to stop. Rosepaw took in behind them, closing in the distance between her and Acornpelt.

“Bumblepaw, get back here this instant!” Called a voice, causing the four cats to come to a halt. Rosepaw miscalculated her speed though and ran into Wildfur with a smack. She shook her head and took a step back to look at the cats that were now standing on the other side of the border.

A scruffy, battle scarred, gray tom was standing there, his blue eyes narrowed into slits as he sized up their patrol. Rosepaw tried to stand her ground but she couldn’t help the shaking feeling under her fur, this cat was not to be messed with. He had a smaller, more plump, apprentice with wide amber eyes with him. His fur was slick and long, obviously he was the apprentice mentioned before. His fear scent was easily detected, making Rosepaw feel a bit better about her mutual fear. 

“Wildfur, an unpleasant sight as always.” The older warrior commented, brushing the apprentice further back with his tail. Wildfur took a step forward, glancing back to Rosepaw before matching the other cat’s eyes with the same mild temper. 

“Wolfeye, you’re being as kind as ever. Care to explain why Fogstar’s kit is out running across borders? Shouldn’t he, of all apprentices, understand where the borders begin and end?” Wolfeye didn’t even wince at the words, instead his eyes shifted over to Rosepaw, as though just now noticing her. She forced herself to not crouch down under his eyes, despite how much she wanted to in this moment. 

“He was chasing after a piece of prey, which he killed. So if you don’t mind-” Wolfeye took a step forward, tempting Wildfur now. 

“I’m sorry, but did it die on your territory or mine?” Wildfur blocked his way across, Spiderfang and Acornpelt rushing to his other sides so that he couldn’t walk around him. “I believe it belongs to us now.” Wolfeye hissed, his fur bristling now but he made no further movement to the border. 

“It died at the paws of my apprentice, making it Ashclan’s prey.” Wolfeye snarled, his teeth obviously gritting with each word he spat out. Rosepaw’s eyes got bigger as she took sight of the anger rising in the tom, would there be a battle today over this prey? Her father still seemed calm, his tail being the only sign of irritation as it flicked back and forth. 

“So if I sent an apprentice of mine into your territory to hunt, any prey they caught would be ours?” Wildfur put his head to the side as he waited. Wolfeye straightened himself back up, flattening his fur and closing his eyes for the moment.

“Very well, Wildfur, you can keep the prey. Only because today is the day of the gathering and I’d rather not show up with the blood of another deputy on my paws. Come, Bumblepaw. We will catch more prey.” With that, Wolfeye turned and lightly pushed the apprentice, who finally seemed to start moving on his own deeper into their territory. 

“That was Wolfeye, and his apprentice Bumblepaw. Wolfeye is the deputy of Ashclan and Bumblepaw is the next in line to be Ashclan’s deputy, so far he’s the only one. Fogstar has no more kits and I don’t know anyone who would want to be mates with Wolfeye.” Spiderfang told her, laughing to himself about the last bit. Rosepaw pulled her eyes off the disappearing cats and onto her mentor, nodding her head. 

“Can we...go back home?” She hesitated, would they still try to get her to scent the border despite the recent disruption? 

“Very well, pick up this...squirrel, Rosepaw.” Wildfur quickly swept his tail over the prey and she rushed over, picking it up in her mouth. It stunk of the Ashclan’s cat but she managed to keep her face even as she followed the patrol back to the camp. 

“We should tell Birdstar to step up the border patrols shouldn’t we? So they don’t go running across it like that.” Acornpelt was fast to add to the last part, her eyes searching Wildfur for a reaction.

“You know how that will go over, Acornpelt, it’s best we just let it be. The last time we did something like that it started a fight with Ashclan, causing several unneeded deaths like Ravenfall. Do you truly think she’d be willing to agree to it?” Wildfur chided, flicking his ear. Rosepaw remembered very little of Birdstar’s mate, only hearing of him through stories from the elders but she knew his death was hard enough on the leader that most cats still chose their words carefully around her. 

The patrol made their way back to camp in silence now, not even the birds seemed to chirp overhead. The smell of the squirrel started to overwhelm Rosepaw though, despite the scent of Ashclan clinging it. Her stomach let out a low growl as they began their way down the slope to camp.

“Place that on the fresh-kill and pick a piece for yourself, I need to talk to Wildfur about how you did.” Spiderfang told her, walking past her to her father. She didn’t need to be told twice as she quickly ran to the fresh-kill. It looked like the hunting patrol hadn’t returned yet so the prey was left over from last night. She chose a small mouse for herself and looked around, wondering where she could eat it.

“Rosepaw! Over here, Smallpaw and I are waiting for Dustpaw to come out of the medicine cat’s den. It’s like waiting for a rabbit to pop out of its burrow.” Owpaw laughed, waving her tail at the apprentice. Rosepaw scrambled over to them, settling besides Owlpaw. 

“He’s supposed to be able to come out today, I don’t think Birdstar would let him miss the gathering tonight.” Smallpaw commented, reaching down to bite at something in between her front toes. Rosepaw turned to get a better look at the medicine cat’s den, wondering if he would be out before the gathering or if Yelloweye would insist he wait up until the last moment. 

“How was your patrol, Rosepaw? You weren’t out very long.” Owlpaw pried, putting her face close to the younger apprentice’s. Rosepaw took a quick bite of her mouse, taking slow chews to avoid answering her. She could feel the mouse slowly turning into mush in her mouth, she’d have to answer her soon. She swallowed it and turned her head to stare into Owlpaw’s amber eyes.

“We saw an Ashclan apprentice running across the border after a piece of prey…” She admitted in a tiny voice, she didn’t know if it was her place to say these types of things but here she was. 

“Who?” Smallpaw’s ears were perked up and her cleaning was abandoned as she seemed very interested in this conversation. 

“Bumblepaw, I think. Wolfeye was with him. We brought back his prey since it was killed on our side of the border.”

“Oooh, I’d give a whole week’s worth of prey to see Wolfeye’s face when you took the prey back to camp!” Owlpaw purred loudly, beaming at her friend. Rosepaw flattened her ears against her head. She didn’t do anything, it was her father who handled the deputy. I was the one who carried it to camp though, wasn’t I? 

“A whole week’s worth?” A hoarse voice let out from behind Smallpaw. All three apprentice’s brought their eyes up to the cat who spoke. Dustpaw! Rosepaw abandoned her piece of prey in favor of touching her nose to her brother’s neck fur, purring so hard she could barely speak. “At least someone missed me.” Dustpaw teased, pulling away from her. Rosepaw gave him a gentle swat to the side of his head. 

“I was worried about you, you big mouse-brained furball!” She grumbled, sitting down in front of him. “How is your paw? Still hurting?”

“A dull ache now, but I have the all clear to return to my warrior duties and join you to the gathering tonight!” Rosepaw couldn’t help the excitement showing on her face, this would be great for them! 

“You know you’re only going because you’re the deputy’s kits, right?” She heard from a bit away, she almost missed it but she turned her head to catch the eyes of Petalkit. 

“Shouldn’t you be in the nursery, Petalkit? It’s a bit past your bedtime.” Owlpaw teased lightly, though there was a hint of annoyance in her tone. “Anyways, most apprentices go to the first gathering as a ‘paw, you will too next moon.” Petalkit let out a snort, sticking her nose up in the air.

“Maybe, if Birdstar even remembers we exist.” She left no room for anyone else to fire back as she slipped back into the nursery, the walls shaking behind her. Rosepaw watched her with a confused look on her face, who put fire ants in her nest?


End file.
